I Listen So You Don't Have To: Steve Austin Show Ep. 286

Austin shoots the breeze with Ted Fowler Photo Credit: WWE.com

If you’re new, here’s the rundown: We listen to a handful of wrestling podcasts each week. Too many, probably, though certainly not all of them. In the interest of saving you time — in case you have the restraint to skip certain episodes — the plan is to give the bare bones of a given show and let you decide if it’s worth investing the time to hear the whole thing. There are many wrestling podcasts out there, of course, but this feature largely hews to the regular rotation we feel best fit the category of hit or miss. If we can save other folks some time, we’re happy to do so.

Show: Steve Austin Show — Unleashed!
Episode: 286 (Dec. 31, 2015)
Run Time: 1:03:27
Guest: Ted Fowler (2:50)

Summary: Austin and Fowler are wrapping up 2015 at the Broken Skull Ranch. They fly through topics over an hourlong chat: the Mona Lisa, Jet-Skis, margarita recipes, coffee, facing Kurt Angle at SummerSlam 2001, gun preferences, Peyton Manning, hunting vs. watching nature, feral pigs, online trolls, big game hunting, lifting weights, painkillers and addiction, the show’s recording setup, recovery from neck injuries, Expendables 4, a bonus Cocksucker Of The Week and Fowler’s love life.

Quote of the week: Austin: “I don’t know why someone would start a social media account just to be so fucking abusive and stupid.”

Fowler: “Eh, they’re just fuckin’ dipshits, man. I mean, I don’t understand why someone would take the time to do that. Fuck, get a hobby. Go do something else, you know? Do you really, truly think you’re impacting that person’s life by shooting up such negative isms?

Why you should listen: The best bit here is Austin promising to once again record running commentary for one of his greatest matches, but that’s just exciting news and not especially compelling audio. The hunting talk gets away from the focus of several recent episodes, which is refreshing.

Why you should skip it: Chances are you’ve heard Austin’s margarita recipe and workout routine and don’t care how Fowler takes his coffee or if he’ll marry again. Even the troll takedown is a retread topic that was better the first time.

Final thoughts: Judged against Austin’s better work, even other discussions with Fowler, this ranks low on the scale. Judged against clip shows or podcasts that simply took a week off, well, you can’t argue with fresh content. But if you haven’t yet listened and your queue is beginning to replenish, don’t bother catching up on 286.